"Doing more exercise with less intensity,"
Arthur Jones believes, "has all but
destroyed the actual great value
of weight training. Something
must be done . . . and quickly."
The New Bodybuilding for
Old-School Results supplies
MUCH of that "something."

This is one of 93 photos of Andy McCutcheon that are used in The New High-Intensity Training to illustrate the recommended exercises.

I'm shorter than average, at 5' 7? and weigh only 147 lbs, however I do have significant fat to lose with an abdomen skinfold of 23-25mm.

If you don't mind me asking, how would you adjust the calorie and diet guidlines used for the skiers for someone shorter and lighter with a more sedentary lifestyle (outside my weekly HIT workouts) such as myself?

I'd suggest that you consume in the neighborhood of 1400-1500 calories per day.

Great results with these guys. I was thinking about something similar to this the other day with regard to specific populations of people. Has bowflex done any work with NASA? I always see astronauts using exercise bike and such to try to maintain bone mass in a weightless environment. It seems like a bowflex or a modified one would be a more effective and low mass way for them to do that. Forgive me if this has already been covered. Thanks.

Well, after reading this thread and a couple others here I went out and purchased The Bowflex Body Plan last night. I bought my Bowflex about 8 years ago and never really used it regularly. I recently started up again and was looking for my original diet plan book and couldn't find which lead me here.

I have been working out for two weeks using the suggested "Better Body Workout" and have been feeling and seeing great results. After reading The Bowflex Body Plan last night I started "The Body-Leaness Plan". WHAT a great difference. The mentality of pushing myself much harder for one set rather than doing two sets wore me out and made my muscles burn way more than the "Better Body Workout".

I will also add that I am a Diabetic so I have to monitor my sugar closely while following the plan but after just one day following the menu in the book I may be able to stop shooting Insulin. My sugars are perfectly maintained with the amount of sugar introduced through "The Body-Leanness" Plan.

A little discouraged today, after 1 week of following the body leanness plan to a tee I actually gained two pounds??? On a good note, my sugar is well enough under control that insulin injections can be stopped and my body fat percentage is slightly down.

Well, the weight still isn't dropping, however, people are commenting that my gut is disappearing. After almost two weeks on the program I think I'm going to have to purchase additional power rods for my Bowflex PowerPro. I just completed my workout and I was able to bench press everything on the machine (210LBS) 12 times... not bad for a 34 year old fat diabetic after starting at 140 on the bench press.

wparrish wrote:
A little discouraged today, after 1 week of following the body leanness plan to a tee I actually gained two pounds??? On a good note, my sugar is well enough under control that insulin injections can be stopped and my body fat percentage is slightly down.

To expand upon what Ellington said:
Your measurements are going down in places were the fat is most prominent (waist/chest/thighs) and stays the same or even increase were fat is accumulated less usually(calves/biceps).
Conclusion: You lost a good amount of fat and replaced it with heavier muscles.

Ciccio wrote:
wparrish wrote:
A little discouraged today, after 1 week of following the body leanness plan to a tee I actually gained two pounds??? On a good note, my sugar is well enough under control that insulin injections can be stopped and my body fat percentage is slightly down.

To expand upon what Ellington said:
Your measurements are going down in places were the fat is most prominent (waist/chest/thighs) and stays the same or even increase were fat is accumulated less usually(calves/biceps).
Conclusion: You lost a good amount of fat and replaced it with heavier muscles.

Congrats,

Franco

I am just beginning the program and I am wondering what your results were at the end of your own program?

Dr. Darden,
I have read your book "The Bowflex Body Plan" thoroughly, and am truly encouraged. I am a college student, and therefore limited to the community gym at my school. There are alot of free weights, dumbells, and hammer strength machines but no Bowflex.

My question is: would there be any way to gain similar results with the equipment at my disposal, or would the time lag necessary to rack and re-rack machines hinder the success of the Hard Body Challenge?

MSUhcky wrote:
Dr. Darden,
I have read your book "The Bowflex Body Plan" thoroughly, and am truly encouraged. I am a college student, and therefore limited to the community gym at my school. There are alot of free weights, dumbells, and hammer strength machines but no Bowflex.

My question is: would there be any way to gain similar results with the equipment at my disposal, or would the time lag necessary to rack and re-rack machines hinder the success of the Hard Body Challenge?

You'll be fine with free weights and Hammer machines. Just substitute similar exercises for the Bowflex ones.

Hello Doc. I'm a married 45 y.o. ret. police detective. I was a first responder on 9-11 and wound up retiring with a disability pension for COPD and PTSD. I have always worked out with weights, but post 9-11, I only managed to gain weight. Stress, comfort eating, alcohol, and some of the meds I take are the main culprits.

I have always been on the weight "roller coaster",in the past the gym was the great equalizer, but this is the all time low for me. 5'10 and 302 lbs! I have finally started to emerge from the fog I've been in. I've been following the Bowflex/HIT routine you outlined here. Plenty of water,3 days Bowflex and 2 days tread mill.

Been following the sample diet almost to the letter with the exception of breakfast where I will have an egg instead of a cheese slice. Additionally, I will have a non-fat yogurt with fruit in place of the shake and bar. I take a multi-vitamin as well. I went to my M.D. for a physical and so far so good. Since I started 11 days ago, I have lost 15 lbs., my energy level is high and my head is clear. My libido seems to have relocated much to the disdain of my wife.

My hope is that with continued weight loss and energy gain, that will correct itself. My workouts last approximately 25 mins, and I use an AB-Lounge instead of the Flex for that part of the routine. At the end of the 6 week program, I will start over again from week 1 and continue the process until I reach my goal of 185 lbs. I would like to check in with you from time to time to relate my progress. Best wishes- Pat.

Well Doc, it's been 2 weeks and I'm checking in. I started your program on 1/8 and as previously mentioned, made a few minor adjustments. Start wgt. was 302. On 1/15- 288. On 1/22- 280. Today on 1/29- 272. Going into week 3 of HIT routine with high energy levels. Been using tread mill on off days. Feel good, feel "up" and have been religious about super-hydration. I find my metabolism is kicking in during sleep as well and find myself actually sweating at night. Head is clear and am focusing on end game. Your program is working well for me and I am lucky I found you when I did. See you in 2 weeks. - Pat.

I am a 24 year old male. I am 5'10 and been as low as 160 lbs. I did gain a few pounds over the holidays and now am between 163 and 164. I have owned a Bowflex for a number of years and own your "Bowflex Body Plan" book. In January 2006 I weighed 215 pounds but lost that weight by either swimming or running for an hour each day. Since I got mononucleosis in October I stopped my daily work-out routine and only work out a few days a week. I realize now that I am starting to gain fat because I am losing muscle. I have been thinking of following the "Hard Body Challenge" as opposed to the "Leanness Plan". Do you think my body will be fine with the 1900 calories as opposed to 1500? I am happy with my weight at 160 and people say I look "too skinny" but I have a lot of fat to lose on my midsection (love handles and gut) and chest. I've already purchased the Ultramet and Snacbars for the program. Just wondering if you think I should be on fewer than 1900 calories. I don't mind if it takes longer than 6 weeks on 1900. Thanks.

i turned 17 about a month ago, i'm a junior in high school. Im 194, about 5'9, and want to go back to when I was 174 about a year n a half ago. On Feb 3, I ate easily more than 4500 calories (superbowl) then ate an avg of 1900 for the rest of the week. I used my old bowflex sport 3x that week and lost 4 pounds.

So since I lost 4 lbs, I figured that I should stay on this workout because it proved good. But I read some articles that said that 1 set is all I need, and the results of those guys look really good.

So should I stay on my workout or switch over to the florida dreamin workout, and if I switch should I add sets/exercises to week 1-2 so i keep up with my previous weeks and continue my progress? Also, since I am technically a teen, should I consume more than 1900 calories or is that fine?

Ellington Darden wrote:
At age 24, either plan would probably work. Personally, I'd choose the 1500 calorie per day one.

Ellington

I know that I'm not supposed to do any type of cardio while I'm trying to lose fat on the program but running has become something that I love to do.

If I were to limit my jogging to about 20 minutes per day (at about a 6 mph pace) could I just go with the 1900 calorie plan? I just feel a lot better when I do cardio. If I were to do the 1500 calorie plan I would probably use the menu for your ab focus workout rather than the body leanness since I already spent 100 bucks on the Champion products.

mojobadger wrote:
Ellington Darden wrote:
At age 24, either plan would probably work. Personally, I'd choose the 1500 calorie per day one.

Ellington

I know that I'm not supposed to do any type of cardio while I'm trying to lose fat on the program but running has become something that I love to do.

If I were to limit my jogging to about 20 minutes per day (at about a 6 mph pace) could I just go with the 1900 calorie plan? I just feel a lot better when I do cardio. If I were to do the 1500 calorie plan I would probably use the menu for your ab focus workout rather than the body leanness since I already spent 100 bucks on the Champion products.

Okay, give it a go. Up the calories to 1900 per day and try running. But be careful.

Great article, thanks so much. Just what I needed as a new and slightly confused Bowflex owner, too. I'm using the i-Trainer software and it designed a low-weight/hi-reps with multiple sets workout for me, but I'm creating a new workout based on your recommendations. I enjoy working out daily, so I thought I would focus on upper body and abs M/W/F and lower body T/Th/Sa, and I walk on the treadmill for 20 minutes at the beginning of each workout.

Does that sound acceptable even though it isn't quite what you recommend in your article? I'm Male, 38, and bout 70 pounds overweight at 245, 5'10". I worry that I run the risk of "burning out" on a 6 days-per-week schedule. Thanks again Ellington!